Elsien's Traveblogue

Donegal

It was lovely being out and about again – my first 'outing' since Florence in February; I don't count trips to Holland, Belgium or even a weekend in Paris as proper 'outings'!

Flew out to Belfast where I met up with J – I'd managed to organise both our in- and outward flights within 10 minutes of each other. Spent the night in an Indian-run B&B near Queen's University – a very good deal too, ask me for details should you ever go to Belfast! Explored Belfast's very Victorian City centre and the now redundant shipyard (Harland and Wolff – I remember it closing in the eighties). Didn't go and look at the Shankill Road etc. - it didn't feel right to me to start tourist gaping at the site of so much hatred and division. Derry was different, it was unavoidable as we had to walk through the Boghill area every day. That's where we went the next day and we did look at the Boghill Murals and the Free Derry museum. We were both struck by how small the area of all this rioting was, how few people were actively involved in it and how many of those were teenage boys. The explosions of violence seemed inevitable though, if you read the history of poverty and deprivation in the area. 24 people to a two-room house, no jobs, no food … and powerless to change anything through democratic processes – religion doesn't even come into it!

The whole area has now been overhauled and the original houses replaced with fairly decent council housing. We walked around the walls of Derry – now, it might be more appropriate to call that Londonderry as it was a complete outpost of London, sponsored by the City of London and its Guilds – see the Guild Hall where Gina and Tara got married. I spent some time with Gina, family and friends and saw their new house in a lovely rural setting, very jealous of the space!

On Monday we picked up the car I'd hired and drove to Ballybofey, middle of Donegal, to Jackson's Hotel, where I'd secured the best deal of all: two nights for the two of us for 104€ - should have been 360€! It was one of those lovely old-fashioned family hotels, with view of a little stream, a roaring log-fire in the lounge and dark wood everywhere. Generous Irish portions of food in the dining-room – what more could we want?

posted by Elsien Gale  # 3:45 AM